This is going to sound like a tall tale, but hear me out. I was a automobile mechanic for 22 years before going into fleet management and I noticed something during my last stint as a wrench. When road testing vehicles after repairs I always took the same route. At just about the point when a vehicle would reach operating temperature I would have to wait at a left turn red light. While sitting at the light with a vehicle that I had just repaired I smelled hot coolant. When I returned to the shop I inspected the vehicle, even pressure tested the cooling system, I found no leak. Then the same thing happened again, and again, and again… always at the same intersection. Frustrated I returned to the intersection on foot and found that he odor was caused by some plant in the field beyond the fence line. Since then, I have noticed the same odor while walking on a trail along the foothills, I call it the “Hot Coolant Plant”, I know there’s no such thing but the odor is unmistakable and smells exactly like hot coolant.
So my questions would be if I were in the same predicament:
Is my bike consuming coolant? If no then there’s no leak.
Is this something relatively new, like since the beginning of spring weather?
Do you notice the odor in the same geographical area? Do you even smell it in the garage after returning home?
I hate stop leak products so I wouldn’t recommend using any. Investing in a cooling system pressure tester is a bit much for the do-it-yourselfer but would be the best way to locate a slow leak. Other than that you can look for a white crust buildup, that is usually is an indicator of a slow leak.
-Disclaimer- Do not try this at home. This is really going to sound bizarre but automotive fluids have different flavors, coolant is sweet, brake fluid is bitter, oil is oily… I am in no way suggesting that anyone consume chemicals, but I must admit that I have been known to take a taste from time to time, when I’m having trouble identifying a fluid.


I’m a bit old school.